We recently celebrated singlehood, which is not always thought of as a gift by you who are currently single. This may sound trite, but be encouraged to live life “to the full” as you fulfill God's purpose. Follow in the steps of Jesus!

Now we'll look at families. Joshua said to the children of Israel “if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve...but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” Jos. 24:15. The children of Israel responded several times “we will serve the Lord,” but Joshua told them “You cannot serve the Lord. Now therefore, put away the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart to the LORD God of Israel."

“The Holy Spirit does not convict in the abstract” is a thought from Larry Crabb. On that note, a father or mother can say “Yeah, my family serves God,” but do you specifically adjust your schedule, priorities, and recreation to be a doer of the Word and not just a hearer? What idols keep you from leading family worship? Fathers, which part of your day do you gather your wife and children together to read a portion of God's Word, pray together, and even sing together? Believe me, this does not happen automatically, and regularly scheduled family worship is not as easy or (mindless?) as reading the news, completing projects, tracking sports, or sitting on the armchair staring at the ceiling with glazed eyes. One woman said she will not drink her coffee until she spends time with God. While this may be her first step on the road to recovery from coffee addiction, it is not a theological end-all; however, perhaps fathers and mothers need to consider variations of this for family worship. “I will not read the news until we have family worship.” “I will allow the dishes to wait to be washed if we need to meet together now.” (The dishes won't mind.) “I will get rid of my TV.” “I will ask a brother to check in with me weekly to ask if I have led my family together in worship.”

One more note to fathers (or to the single mothers among us.) It is your responsibility to lead your family in worship; you are not called to be a great singer, speaker, or reader, but you are called to worship God with your family. Fathers, you may worry that you are not good enough to lead your wife and children in worship. Maybe your wife is “more spiritual”? Face that fear and deal with it, man. The Holy Spirit wants you to seek your Father with your whole heart, and on the way you are called to model to your children the life of a repentant believer. Your greatest strength may be found in worshiping God with your wife and children; your purpose in life will be made more clear as you accept this God-given task!

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A Faith That Works

For the past few years, I have occasionally written articles under the heading "A Faith That Works", for our congregation. These are mostly related to practical Christianity. Recently, we have merged them into blog format. Feel free to read and respond at your discretion. May God direct you to love Him and to love others! Rich Schwartz